The Office of Library Services (OLS) powers CUNY’s 31 libraries with shared technology, resources, and expertise.
We maintain the integrated library system, discovery platform, and proxy servers that provide seamless access to resources. We negotiate university-wide licenses for electronic databases and journals, support cataloging and authority control, and strengthen open scholarship through publishing platforms and the institutional repository. We also lead CUNY’s OER initiatives and operate a grant-funded archives program.
This centralized model delivers innovation, economies of scale, and consistent service that individual campuses couldn’t achieve alone.
Office of Library Services
555 W 57th St, 16th Fl
New York, NY 10019
libraries@cuny.edu
OLS manages CUNY’s integrated library system (Alma) and discovery platform (Primo VE). This infrastructure handles acquisitions, cataloging and circulation for all 31 libraries while providing users a single search interface for books, articles, databases and digital collections.
The unified system reduces technology costs and creates consistent workflows for library staff. Users access CUNY’s entire collection through OneSearch, which lets you search for physical books or electronic resources.
OneSearch lets you search in one place for books, articles, DVDs, and more.
OLS negotiates licensing agreements for databases and journals across all 31 CUNY libraries. Our collective purchasing power secures better pricing and broader access than individual campuses could achieve independently.
We maintain 17 EZproxy servers that enable 24/7 remote access to these resources, integrated with CUNY’s single sign-on system. Students and faculty can access licensed content from anywhere, and campus libraries supplement these shared resources with specialized collections tailored to their programs.
OLS funds course conversions and provides platforms that enable faculty across CUNY to create and share open educational resources. Campus librarians work directly with faculty to develop OER materials that cut textbook costs while improving course content.
We maintain the technical infrastructure—Pressbooks, Manifold, CUNY Academic Commons, and CUNY OpenEd—that supports OER creation and distribution. Contact your campus OER representative to get started, or browse what’s already available.
Contact your campus OER representative to get started, or browse what’s already available.
OLS provides the technical infrastructure and hosting that enables scholarly publishing across CUNY, supporting peer-reviewed journals, conference proceedings and multimedia publications. Campus librarians use this infrastructure to work with faculty and departments on digital publications that showcase CUNY research.
Our centralized approach ensures open access distribution and long-term preservation while reducing publishing costs. This model expands the reach of CUNY scholarship and provides sustainable alternatives to traditional academic publishing.
OLS manages CUNY Academic Works, the University’s central repository for scholarly and creative output. We collect and provide open access to faculty articles, student dissertations, OER materials, reports and other research from all CUNY campuses. The repository increases discoverability through search engines and drives citations by making CUNY scholarship freely available worldwide.
We handle the technical infrastructure and provide support through our directory of campus coordinators, guide for authors, and Librarian Toolkit. This centralized approach preserves CUNY’s intellectual output while maximizing its global impact.
OLS coordinates archival initiatives across CUNY’s 31 libraries, preserving institutional history and supporting research and teaching. These archives hold unique primary sources documenting our communities, public higher education history and specialized research.
Campus archivists digitize collections, create exhibits, develop curriculum materials and offer research consultations connecting these resources with students, faculty and the community. Through the Mellon Foundation-funded Cultivating Archives & Institutional Memory Project (running through 2026), OLS provides technical support and coordination across the university.
Discover CUNY’s historical collections and research materials through our CUNY Archives portal, where the university’s diverse institutional memory awaits exploration.
OLS operates through the Council of Chief Librarians, advisory committees, and working groups that bring together librarians from all 26 campuses. These bodies develop shared policies, optimize workflows, and solve system-wide problems while preserving each library’s autonomy.
This structure balances central coordination with campus flexibility. Decisions get input from practitioners across the university, ensuring system-wide services work for the libraries that use them.